On March 12, 1899, three families from the former First Methodist Church in downtown Tampa gathered in a two-room schoolhouse on the corner of Magnolia and Platt streets to start a Sunday School for neighborhood children. They sang “I Love to Tell the Story,” and the infancy of our congregation was born.

Over the last few months, we have been blessed to hear stories of our history from a wonderful team of writers in our church, led by the Rev. Dr. Jim Harnish, our long-time senior pastor from 1992 to 2014. Here are their stories:

Dear Hyde Park Family,

As our nation observes the inauguration of a new President this Monday, I offer this prayer, the same I have provided you on past Inauguration Days, regardless of who has been elected.

May we join in prayer, not only for our elected leaders, but for our own renewed commitment to God as followers of the way of Jesus.

A Prayer for Inauguration Day

Gracious and Holy God, whose mind conceived a world resplendent with beauty and goodness, whose heart envisioned a people governed by your love, and whose timeless eye has witnessed the rise and fall of history’s kingdoms, we pray to you as a nation humbled by the burdens of freedom.

This precious gift you have granted to us – the free will to choose our own destiny, to enjoy the fruit of our prudence, and to live with the consequences of our mistakes – summons us to a wisdom beyond ourselves, and to serve an interest greater than our own.

So, O Lord, on the day when we inaugurate a new term for the leaders of this land, clarify our commitment to you and the aims of your kingdom. Remind us that our primary citizenship is defined neither by borders or ideologies, but by a Love that called us into being, and calls us into service.

Grant to Donald Trump and J.D. Vance a wisdom to discern the common good from political expedience, the way of justice from the way of disparity, the embrace of self-evident equality from the division of harmful self-interest, and the currency of love from the gluttony of greed.

We are a people in need today, for too many yet sleep in hunger and wander the streets without shelter. There are those whose livelihoods are at risk from economic hardship and natural disasters. Our world is rife with conflict, and our cities are marred by violence. We yearn for the day when every valley will be raised up, every mountain brought low, and all our rough places made plain.

Yet, in all things, and even throughout the course of this inaugural day, remind us that our hope and promise rest not in manufactured systems of power, but in you alone. Forgive us, O Lord, for relying on our government to grant that which only you can provide: security from all harm, an ethic of love, and a mutual embrace of one another as your children.

Therefore, call us together, as your holy people and the living body of your son Jesus Christ, to live out your bidding as builders of your kingdom. As we pray for our President and all of our elected officials, lead us into new endeavors to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with you. Show us more opportunities to make your love real here and abroad. Empower us to effect change in, through, and even despite our systems of government.

And may the inaugural words of your son Jesus Christ be true in its telling today:

“Today, the Scriptures have been fulfilled in your hearing.”

In your holy name we pray, Amen.

Grace and Peace,

Dear Hyde Park Family,

The amazing Diana Butler Bass offers this prayer for Thanksgiving, published in Worship Any Time or Place. (Abingdon Press) It is well worth your reflection, and you may even choose to use all or a portion of it as part of your Thanksgiving observance with family and friends.

On behalf of the clergy, staff, and lay leadership of Hyde Park United Methodist Church, I wish you and yours a blessed season of gratitude, and a holy Advent ahead.

“A Thanksgiving Prayer”

By Diana Butler Bass

God, there are days we do not feel grateful. When we are anxious or angry. When we feel alone. When we do not understand what is happening in the world or with our neighbors.

When the news is bleak, confusing. God, we struggle to feel grateful.

But this Thanksgiving, we choose gratitude.

We choose to accept life as a gift from you, and as a gift from the unfolding work of all creation.

We choose to be grateful for the earth from which our food comes; for the water that gives life; and for the air we all breathe.

We choose to thank our ancestors, those who came before us, grateful for their stories and struggles, and we receive their wisdom as a continuing gift for today.

We choose to see our families and friends with new eyes, appreciating and accepting them for who they are. We are thankful for our homes, whether humble or grand.

We will be grateful for our neighbors, no matter how they voted, whatever our differences, or how much we feel hurt or misunderstood by them.

We choose to see the whole planet as our shared commons, the stage of the future of humankind and creation.

God, this Thanksgiving, we do not give thanks. We choose it. We make this choice of thanks with courageous hearts, knowing that it is humbling to say “thank you.” We choose to see your sacred generosity, aware that we live in an infinite circle of gratitude. That we all are guests at a hospitable table around which gifts are passed and received. We will not let anything opposed to love take over this table. Instead, we choose grace, free and unmerited love, the giftedness of life everywhere. In this choosing, and in the making, we will pass gratitude onto the world.

Thus, with you, and with all those gathered at this table, we pledge to make thanks. We ask you to strengthen us in this resolve. Here, now, and into the future. Around our family table. Around the table of our nation. Around the table of the earth.

We choose thanks.

Amen.

JOIN US FOR ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS

This Sunday begins the season of Advent, in preparation for a joyous celebration of Easter. Join us as we begin our new series called “The Christmas Letters,” based on my new book, which you can purchase online or on the Hyde Park campus this Sunday. You can also join a small group to enjoy the book with others.

You will also want to visit our All Things Christmas Page to learn about all our exciting events for Advent and Christmas.

Dear Hyde Park Family,

The following is a pastoral word I had intended to share regardless of the outcome of yesterday’s elections.

BE GENTLE WITH YOURSELF

First, I want to acknowledge what a stressful season of uncertainty this has been for all of us. In our staff chapel last Tuesday, I shared with the team that I had never before equated election polls with spaghetti models, yet both have been eliciting the same emotions of worry and anxiety for many people for the last two months.

So, the first pastoral word I offer is to be gentle and gracious with yourself. This is not to repress or deny whatever else you may be feeling; indeed, that may only strengthen the intensity of those other emotions. Instead, be intentional about breathing, connecting with others for support, and finding beauty in each moment.

WORK FOR THE GOOD, EVEN WITHIN YOURSELF

The second pastoral word comes from my scripture and prayer time this morning. Consider the following verses:

“All the ways of people are pure in their eyes, but the Lord tests the motives. When people draw favor from the Lord, even their enemies are at peace with them.” (Proverbs 16:2,7)

“Do all things without murmuring and arguing, so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world.” (Philippians 2:14-15)

The broken nature of our politics and our deeply polarized society have only intensified our responses to winning and losing. Yes, elections matter. The support you show to your causes and candidates is meaningful and impactful work, and your vote is, as Sen. Rev. Rafael Warnock said, “a kind of prayer for the world we desire for ourselves and our children.”

At the same time, if we assign ultimate power to our political systems for enacting God’s vision for our lives and our world, then it becomes idolatrous.

Instead, it is by the grace God that we can do the work of love and justice that the world needs, to transform lives and communities. Paul summoned us to “shine like stars in the world.” And as the poet Rumi said, “If everything around seems dark, look again, you may be the light.”

YOU ARE NOT ALONE

You are not alone. You are part of a faith community here that is committed to the work of love and justice, regardless of who is in political power. We remain open as ever to a diversity of people and perspectives, called to love God and love all. We will continue doing acts of both compassion and justice, to transform lives and the world around us.

On my Facebook page the morning of the election, I offered the following words:

“Went on a longer run than usual this morning, praying for our country most every step of the way. That I might lean into what is uncertain, cling to what is reliable and trustworthy, and renew my commitment to God’s ongoing call to love and justice. Because no matter what happens, the politics of God is grander and even more demanding than the partisanship of the world.” (November 5, 7:22am)

Ultimately, friends, we are here to support you, love you, and pray for you, no matter what you are feeling. Please let a member of the clergy team know if we can help you.

Grace and Peace,